Nintendo dept. opens at Time Square Toys R Us

The flagship Toys R Us store in Time Square has just opened a 1000 square foot section dedicated entirely to Nintendo. The store-within-a-store has specialized employees, an entire bank of Wii and DS demo kiosks, and a Nintendo history display.
Am I the only one who finds this a little gratuitous? Nintendo already has their own freakin' store in downtown New York, and all Toys R Us outlets have a section dedicated to videogames. I could see Toys R Us doing this in another city that doesn't have an entire Nintendo specialty store, but this much Nintendo crammed into Manhattan is a bit unneccessary. If you ask me, Nintendo needs to spend less time cultivating their "friendly toy for the whole family" image and put more time into recapturing the hardcore demographic that made them their bread and butter in the first place; incidentally, that crowd is defecting to the 360 in droves.

Dedicated Nintendo Department Opens at Toys“R”Us Times Square

‘Store Within a Store’ is Newest Attraction at The World’s Greatest Toy Store

NOTE: Multimedia available below

REDMOND, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Holiday shoppers visiting Toys“R”Us Times Square will find a new surprise waiting for them—a new Nintendo department offering an interactive way to have fun, while experiencing the wide range of Nintendo products available this holiday season and beyond.

The Nintendo department, located on Level One of the Toys“R”Us international flagship store, is nearly 1,000 square feet and is easily visible from the store’s windows overlooking Broadway. Visitors to The World’s Greatest Toy Store™ will find an interactive Wii™ wall within the department, offering shoppers the chance to play select Wii games. Additionally, shoppers interested in sampling a portable experience can play one of eight Nintendo DS™ systems with a variety of games. The department also features a Nintendo gallery, showcasing images from Nintendo’s history of classic and current games.

The Nintendo department also features specially trained Nintendo experts who can walk shoppers through the department’s experience and provide information about Nintendo products. Shoppers can easily identify these experts by their special Nintendo-branded uniforms.

“What we’ve been seeing all year long is the expansion of video game fun to people of both genders, and all ages and tastes—there’s literally something for everyone,” said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. “But in recent weeks, Nintendo products appear to be appealing to even more people, as every form of fun is being measured against a price tag.And that’s what makes this experience in Toys“R”Us so compelling—all the fun and information is available right at your fingertips.”

“Toys“R”Us Times Square is the premier New York City destination for families, and Nintendo offers the ultimate family gaming experience, making a partnership between our two brands the perfect match,” said Bill Lee, Vice President, Divisional Merchandise Manager, Toys“R”Us, U.S. “The new, dedicated Nintendo department at Toys“R”Us Times Square allows us to offer customers an exceptional interactive experience for testing out the latest Nintendo products.”

In addition to the new, experiential Nintendo department, shoppers can also find the full range of Nintendo products in the “R” Zone department on the store’s Lower Level.

About Nintendo: The worldwide pioneer in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Wii™ and Nintendo DS™ systems. Since 1983, when it launched the Nintendo Entertainment System™, Nintendo has sold nearly 2.8 billion video games and more than 480 million hardware units globally, including the current-generation Wii and Nintendo DS, as well as the Game Boy™, Game Boy Advance, Super NES™, Nintendo 64™ and Nintendo GameCube™. It has also created industry icons that have become well-known, household names such as Mario™, Donkey Kong™, Metroid™, Zelda™ and Pokémon™. A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo’s operations in the Western Hemisphere. For more information about Nintendo, visit the company’s Web site at www.nintendo.com.